Developing high-performing teams

“Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.” -- Patrick Lencioni, author The Five Disfunctions of Team.

"The person who figures out how to harness the collective genius of the people in his or her organization is going to blow the competition away." --Walter Wriston, CEO Citibank.

From my experience, I believe the servant leader should be concerned with developing teams to create organizational learning and a dynamic work environment. Everyone knows that collaboration and teamwork are critical to organizational success. Therefore, the leader who can effectively develop and influence teams is at a competitive advantage.

In The Discipline of Teams, Jon Katzenbach and Douglas Smith look at what makes a team successful, what are barriers to teamwork, and how a team differs from a working group. When leaders develop the right conditions, teams are destined to flourish.

Transformational leadership

A style of leadership that shares many characteristics of servant leadership is transformational leadership. According to Burns (1978), transformational leaders "shape and alter and elevate the motives and values and goals of followers throught the vital teaching role of leadership" (p. 425. Moreover, tranformational leadership, like servant leadership is concerned with end-values such as liberty, justice, and equality. Transformational leaders want followers to reach their potential and meet the followers higher needs.

Transformational leaders:

• articulate a clear and appealing vision.
• explain how the vision can be attained.
• act confident and optimistic.
• express confidence in followers.
• use dramatic, symbolic actions to emphsize key values.
• lead by example.

Improve your leadership skills

With the rapid changes due to globalization and the internet, it is critical more than ever for aspiring leaders to grow and learn. In Thomas L. Friedman's best selling book, The World is Flat the author outlines how everything in today's competitive marketplace is changing due to ten flatteners. With continuing advances in communication and technology, the world is changing faster than ever.

In a recent report, it was estimated a high school senior in the class of 2008 would be exposed to twice as much knowledge in his or her final year of secondary school as the same student's grandparents were exposed to in grades K-12 entirely. Moreover, according to the Global Language Monitor website, there are currently 989, 614 words in the English language. The Oxford English Dictionary adds about 10,000 words per year to its reference pages.

So how can today's leader improve his or her leadership skills to meet the challenges of globalization? Here are some of the strategies that have worked for me:

1. Read widely from good books on leadership, technology, organizational and management theory.
2. Seek out leadership opportunities and build relationships with successful leaders in your field.
3. Pursue advanced degrees from quality institutions of higher learning.
4. Help others develop their leadership skills.
5. Reflect on your experiences as a leader. Be honest with yourself about your strengths and weaknesses.
6. Set goals.
7. Develop a purpose--a higher cause--for your work as a leader. Know your own personal mission and vision for your future.
8. Attend conferences and workshops related to leadership.

These are a few of the strategies I have used to grow as a leader. I would welcome your feedback for good ideas that have helped you learn the business of leadership.

Servant leaders sense mission and vision

According to Blanchard and Hodges (2003), "Servant leadership begins with a clear and compelling vision of the future that exites passion in the leader and commitment in those who follow. In practical terms a good vision has three parts:

Your purpose/mission: What business you are in--How will it benefit your customers?

Your preferred picture of the future: Where are you going--What will you look like if everything is running as planned?

Your values: How do you want people to behave when they are working on your mission and picture of the future--What do you stand for?"

Blanchard, K., & Hodges, P. (2003) The Servant Leader. Nashville, TN: J. Countryman.

Motivating others by meeting needs

Robert Greenleaf wrote that the servant leader is one who seeks to help followers become "wiser, freer, and more autonomous" and "better able themselves to lead." An important insight for the aspiring leader is to realize a key to organizational success is to help those being led reach their full potential. Much has been written about "investing" in people, about how to train and develop a work force team. But what a leader really needs to understand is what every person needs to be motivated.

The following three keys to personal motivation are critical to success for each of us and those around us:

Three basic needs that lead to motivation
1. autonomy—a sense of control, freedom, and choice over one’s circumstances
2. sense of belonging—a belief that one is significant beyond one’s own self
3. competence—no one wants to feel stupid; instead, we need to feel able to succeed

Keep in mind these basic needs are just that, NEEDS. Not wants, not hopes, but needs. As a leader hopes to inspire, motivate, and serve always consider how to serve other's needs. Help followers to be more autonomous, give them a sense of belonging, and develop their sense of competence.

What is your definition of power?

When defining power, most people think of words like influence, control, authority, and the ability to get things done. Some leaders covet power; they are hungry for it. Their idea of leadership is to exercise power over others--some acting in others best interest, with some acting in self's best interest. But I would challenge the whole notion of "power over" as the means to true leadership. Instead, I would advocate for "power with" those being led.

This type of leadership is what Robert Greenleaf defined as servant leadership, that those being led should be wiser, freer, more autonomous, and more likely themselves to serve others. By building consensus, by listening, by sharing a vision for the future, true leaders empower followers to succeed.

"Power over" relies of coercion, manipulation, and positional authority to get things done. "Power with" asks for followers to learn together, to develop a common purpose, and to improve self for the sake of the whole.

When you make decisions regarding what type of leadership you will exert today, be a "power with" leader. Choose your words and deeds with your followers best interests in mind.